The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1887-05-28
TIE RED SEA
EXPLANATORY NOTES BY s. /.
CURTISS, PHI. o., D. D.

Lesson IN of the International Series
Second Quarter), for Sunday. May 3D.
Text Of the Lesson, Eek. xiv, 1881.
Golden Text, lisa. Kill, :.
Death Of the First Born-The destroyer
passed through the land. III every home OF
the Egyptians the eldest son was suddenly
stricken at midnight, from the trstborn OF
Pharaoh to the captive in the dungeon. The
land resounded with piercing shrieks from one
end to tho other All was panic and con-
fusion. Both king and people, overcome will
giief and fear, pressed the lsraeltes to leave
in haste, and gladly gave them, in response TO
their just demands, "jcwels of silver, and
jewels Of gold, and raiment"
The Israeites. who had had time to prepare
during tho preceding four days, formed in
great procession, which kept growing MS they
went on, until there were 60 600 men, he
sides women and children and mixed multi
tude.
Moses Difficult Task-Never was intrusted
to any man a more difficult task than that
which was committed to Moses in the leader
ship of this multitude OF slaves. Nothing less
than the displays OF Gods miraculous power,
which are recorded in the history which pre-
cedes and follows could have enabled him to
control such people
Whittier were they goingi To the land OF
Canaan. They knew not that the bones OF
| that generation were to bleach in the wilder.
ness. We cannot determine precisely what
course they took. 1t may be that they began
their march on the well known road to the
land of the Philstnes. God, however, did
| nat tl,nf tha,, cl,n,1l ~ this
way They were likely TO be intercepted by
the soldiers of the line of Notifications then
| extending, as Ebels believes from Potassium,
on the Mediterranean, to Migdol, near the
head of the Red sea. Even if they succeeded
in passing them they would be exposed to the
attack of the Philistnes in front and of the
Egyptians in the rear. Moses was therefore
directed to lead them by the way of the will
derness south to the Red sea. IL was neces-
sary that Israel should he trained in the viii
derness in a moral military, civil and reliS-
ious school before they could be fitted for life
in Canaan Indeed, they had to learn almost
everything that is neediul for nation.
The Pursuit-Accordng TO Egyptian usage
| every other activity should have been laid
aside for at least seventy days Gen. j. 3 that
the people might devote themselves to mourn
ing But most extraordinary event had oc'
| curred-over 100000 of slaves who had con
tributed greatly to the prosperity of the
country were leaving it with untold wealth.
Pharaoh, therefore, who is believed by most
Egyptian scholars to have been Metropolitan,
although he had lost the crown prince, was
impelled by every consideration of interest to
disregard this long period of mourning and
to pursue the lsraelites. He therefore set out
with 600 chosen chariots, besides Others per-
haps, of an inferior sort, in pursuit of the Is
raelites, who he believed were shut up i'll the
wilderness lex. xiv, 3.
We may well imagine how terrified the
Hebrews We're when they saw the well trained
army of Egypt coming against them. Prob
ably they had had no military experience.
With bitter sarcasm they ask Moses if it was
because there were no graves in Egypt tho
land of tomb>) that he had led them away to
die in the wilderness They thought, there
fore, that it would have been far better for
them to die as slaves in Egypt than to perish
in the wilderness; but God had other plans
for fhcm